Steve Yelvington, principal strategist at Morris Publishing Group has been named vice president of audience for the Savannah (Ga.) Morning News, a new, senior-level position created by each of Morris Publishing Group’s metro markets. This new role will focus on building a powerful community voice by growing the news, audience and digital efforts.

Yelvington started his career as a small-town weekly newspaper editor. Since 2001, he has served in senior management positions at Morris DigitalWorks and Morris Publishing Group.

“We are very pleased that Steve will be joining our team. He brings the knowledge, skills and experience we require as we continue to build on our dominant position as the area’s top locally produced digital news and information provider,” said Michael Traynor, publisher of the Savannah Morning News.

“This is a forward-looking company with a broad multimedia portfolio and a bright future. It's a chance to work closely with a great team of talented people I've known for years,” said Yelvington. “Savannah is a great community -- truly a special place, a tourist destination, a world-class port, a builder of aviation technology and a pearl of arts and culture. I'm delighted by the opportunity.”

Yelvington was founding editor of Star Tribune Online Minneapolis in 1994 and built it into one of the top-ranked newspaper sites in the world. As executive editor and network content director for Cox Interactive Media, he supervised a nationwide network of city sites. At Morris, Yelvington has been instrumental in helping develop and execute audience strategies for the digital world.

“Steve’s contributions to the industry to build digital audience have been extraordinary,” said Derek May, executive vice president of Morris Publishing Group. “We have been fortunate to have his expertise at Morris corporate for many years and to now have him lead audience growth in Savannah is a huge win for us.”

In addition to his extensive career, Yelvington has been honored with two exceptional awards – the Editor and Publisher EPPY Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement (2001) and the Newspaper Association of America Online Digital Edge Online Innovator Award (2007).